Artemis Fowl and the House Elf
by RockSunner
Summary: When Holly is caught in a house elf contract, Artemis must infiltrate Hogwarts to free her. Crossover with Harry Potter. Spoilers for TLC and HBP.
1. A Call from Artemis

**Artemis Fowl and the House Elf**

This will be a crossover between Artemis Fowl and Harry Potter. It has spoilers for TLC and HBP. The usual disclaimer: I don't own the characters from either series.

**Chapter 1**

Holly Short woke to the sound of her communicator. Only one person had a ring-tone of a Chinese gong: Artemis Fowl.

"Hello, Artemis," she said sleepily. "Why are you calling at this time of night?"

The underground fairy city of Haven has its own cycles of light and dark, but Artemis was well aware of them. He had visited Haven on more than one occasion.

"It was the best time to use my communicator unobserved," said Artemis unapologetically. "Things have not been going well since my return home. I could use assistance."

"What's wrong?" asked Holly. She knew he would have some difficulty with his parents because he had lost three years to time-travel, but somehow she had expected him to handle it easily.

"I concocted a cover story for my three-year disappearance," said Artemis. "I said that I had been kidnapped, but that I was not sure by whom. I was held in solitary confinement, under harsh conditions that stunted my growth, until I finally managed squeeze through a window and escape."

"That sort of explains why you still look fourteen," said Holly. "But what did you tell them about the eye?"

"I hid your hazel eye under a blue-tinted contact lens," said Artemis. "An eye transplant would have been extremely difficult to weave into the story. I've already needed to fool the doctors during several medical examinations my parents ordered for me. If I called attention to the eye, the doctors might discover it wasn't human."

Holly said, "I suppose they could tell that it's more sensitive to infrared and ultraviolet than a mud-man's eye. I'm having a little trouble adjusting to being half-blind when I do night work."

"In any case, my parents were most distraught. They were delighted to see me, but things are not the same. Father seems intent on finding who kidnapped me and getting revenge."

"What about a mind-wipe?" suggested Holly. "I could pulls some strings in Section 8 to get that done. Butler told your parents some of the truth about the demons, right?"

"Yes, and they believe he went mad with grief," said Artemis. "He's still fired -- they consider him not only mentally unfit but also incompetent for losing me. Juliet abandoned her wrestling career to come back and be my new bodyguard to restore the Butler family honor. As for the mind-wipe, or trying to mesmer them, I'm afraid things have gone beyond that."

"What do you mean?" asked Holly.

"They've talked to too many people. Father resumed his criminal connections to hunt for me and he's too deeply involved to back out again."

"You have some other plan?" asked Holly.

"Of course," said Artemis. "It involves magic and a theory of temporal physics I've been developing. I can't tell you the details now but with the help of Qwan..."

"He's busy with demon re-education," said Holly. "I don't think I could get permission to take him to the surface. If you could come here.."

"My freedom of travel has been greatly restricted," said Artemis. "They're afraid of losing me again; I'm confined to Fowl Manor until they find the kidnappers. The same is true for my twin siblings Apollo and Athena."

"I'm sorry, Artemis," said Holly. "I wish there was more I could do to help. I owe you my life. You saved me by that shot backwards in time."

"Technically I didn't. I didn't fire your gun on our timeline, but on a parallel branch that merged with ours, thus giving me pseudo-memories. Otherwise there would be a severe causality paradox."

"Part of your new time theory? That's too much for me to wrap my mind around at this time of night."

"Never mind," said Artemis curtly. "I'll deal with this myself."

After he hung up, Holly wondered why she had such a sinking feeling. She would soon find out.


	2. Holly Investigates

**Chapter 2**

A few weeks later, Holly was called into the office of Commander Vinyáya, head of Section Eight. Foaly was also there, stamping his hooves nervously.

"Artemis Fowl is up to something," said Vinyáya. "What do you know about it?"

"As far as I know, he can't be up to too much," said Holly. "He's been confined to his home by his parents."

"Since when have his parents been able to control him?" Foaly asked. "We turned tracer satellites back on him ever since he came back with mysterious magical powers."

"The tracers show he's begun vanishing from his room at night and reappearing a few hours later," said Vinyáya. "We suspect he's doing it by magic."

"Maybe he's jamming your tracers?" suggested Holly. "He might not be going anywhere, just toying with you."

"There's more," said Foaly. "I just discovered an unauthorized program running on our computers, with equations similar to the ones we used to track demon appearances."

"Well, he did say he was working on a new theory of temporal physics," said Holly. "There was something about parallel time branches that could merge."

"That's it!" exclaimed Foaly. "The program seemed to be looking for alternate solutions. It treated the spell that took Hybras to Limbo as a variable, and set up the case where that spell failed."

"As if Abbot had succeeded in stopping the transfer completely, instead of just causing the warlocks to be lost?" Holly asked.

"That would be a huge change in history," said Vinyáya. "The demons could have been captured by mud men, and who knows what would have happened after that? All the faerie people would have been compromised."

"Exactly," said Foaly. "According to some of our researchers, our timeline is only one of many possible. Artemis may have found a way to access another timeline."

"That would be extremely dangerous," said Vinyáya. "Section Eight must investigate. Holly, we need you to search Artemis' room."

"What?" said Holly, "I don't have an invitation. He said he'd keep an eye out for me, but that hardly counts."

"We have something better," said Foaly. "During the time Artemis was missing, Artemis Fowl Senior sent out an email to his contacts: 'If anyone has information about what happened to my son, please come to me at any time.' That was never taken back."

"You were with Artemis in Limbo so you certainly qualify," said Vinyáya.

"I don't like spying on Artemis," said Holly. "I owe him my life."

"If Artemis is meddling in time it could wreck the future of Haven and perhaps the whole world," said Vinyáya. "If you don't do it I'll have to send someone else, someone who may be less sympathetic to him."

"All right, I'll do it," said Holly reluctantly.

And so it happened that the following night Holley entered Fowl Manor in shielded LEP armor, just after the tracers said Artemis was gone.

"I found a notebook with pages of encrypted notes on his desk," said Holly into her helmet communicator.

"Flip through it," instructed Foaly. "The helmet can scan them and transmit the images. Our computers here will crack the code."

Holly did this. Then she noticed several small copper-colored spheres in a box at the corner of the desk. She picked one up. It had a button on top.

"What do you think these are?" she asked.

"Be careful," said Foaly, "It may be an alarm or a bomb. Scan it for us and then put it back gently where you found it."

Suddenly there was a shimmer in the air.

"Holly, get out of there fast! Sensors indicate Artemis is ret..."

It was too late. The portal by which Artemis was returning pulled in Holly and she was sucked out of the world.


	3. A World She Never Made

**Chapter 3**

LEP Recon training kept Holly from panic. As the world around her dissolved in a rainbow of colors she realized what must have happened: the return of Artemis from his time-travel must have caught her. She also realized she was unanchored in time, and that she might bounce from one place and time to another until she hit a lethal environment and perished.

In just a few weeks, could Artemis have learned enough control of his magic to anchor himself? Holly doubted it. Suddenly she had an idea. She was materializing in a dark alley between buildings. Before she could be swept away, she pushed the button on the top of the copper sphere from Artemis' room, which she still held in her hand.

There was a click and the sphere opened. Inside was a silver ring. Holly quickly grabbed it and put it on her thumb (it was too big for her other fingers). She waited several minutes, and when no further jumps took place she sighed with relief. The silver ring had anchored her. Artemis must have invented a container to block the anchoring power of silver so that he could jump with the assurance of being able to anchor at the other end.

Holly tried the helmet's channel to Section 8 Headquarters. "Hello, anyone there?" There was nothing but static. She scanned other radio bands. As far as she could tell, the mud-man world was much like the one she had left, full of wars, crime, and terrorism.

She ventured into the street, still shielded from sight by her armor. There she got a shock: there were elves here, following long-robed humans and carrying packages for them. Their ragged dress and subservient manner made Holly realize that this world was Haven's worst nightmare. Elves had been discovered by humans and enslaved!

Holly began logging a report into her helmet's memory. "Foaly, if you ever get this, I have to investigate this world. If Artemis is coming here regularly, and I suspect he is, we need to know all about the dangers it could bring to our timeline. Elves are enslaved here. This timeline must never be merged with ours."

Holly set the camera in her helmet to record her for as long as possible. She removed the armor and concealed it in an old pile of bricks that looked like it had not been disturbed in a long time. If other LEP agents managed to get here they would be able to locate it and get her report. If they didn't ever find her, at least she wouldn't be caught wearing this advanced armor.

There was an elf walking alone, warmly dressed in several hats and scarves. She decided to approach him rather than the more miserably dressed slaves.

"Hello," she tried in Gnomish. When he looked blank, she switched to English. "Hello, sir."

"Dobby not sir," said the elf. "Dobby regular elf. Dobby sees you have been given clothes. Don't be shamed. Dobby was freed too."

"Holly not shamed," said Holly, mimicking his style of avoiding the personal pronoun. She realized that wearing proper clothing must be the mark of a freed slave, and that somehow there was a cultural stigma to this.

"Good," said Dobby. "Holly need job? Dobby works for Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft," Dobby said. "Very good place. Fall semester starts soon and they need more elves."

Holly considered this. If humans had developed their own magic here, a school where they were trained was a prime site for investigation.

"Yes, Holly needs job," she agreed.

"Follow Dobby to recruiting station," said Dobby.

In a storefront not far away, a giant of a man hunched over a tiny desk. Dobby went in and spoke to the man in a low voice. Holly stopped at the threshold.

"May Holly come in?" she asked nervously. This was a human habitation and she had to have permission or lose her magic.

"Dobby likes yah, and that's good enough for me," the man bellowed. "You may enter Hogwarts under our standard contract. Come in. Hagrid's the name, by the way."

Holly stepped inside. She didn't know what conditions the "standard contract" contained, but she could find out before entering Hogwarts.

"Welcome, Holly!" said Dobby. "Now Holly is Hogwarts house-elf."

"We got some sheets behind that screen over there," said Hagrid. "Yah can change there."

Holly was confused, "The job's already started?"

"Yep," said Hagrid. "Legally this office is an extension of Hogwarts, so you're now under contract. There's a few differences from the regular house-elf contract you oughta know about. I'll get you a copy, just a sec."

He rummaged in the desk and produced an enormous document, which he tossed to her. Holly looked at it with misgivings. She had obligated herself to obey it by entering. What had she gotten herself into?


	4. The Contract

**Chapter 4**

As soon as Artemis materialized, Foaly called to him on his ring communicator.

"Artemis, this is Foaly. I have to talk to you."

"Foaly, I suspected you might be monitoring this channel, but I never expected you to tip your hand so blatantly," Artemis replied coldly.

"This is an emergency! Holly could be lost in time," said Foaly. "She was in the room when you transported in."

"You sent Holly to spy on me? Worse and worse," said Artemis.

"Aren't you worried about her?" asked Foaly.

"I'm not concerned about her immediate fate. I see that one of my anchoring ring containers is missing. She has the capability to anchor herself and sufficient cleverness to use it," said Artemis.

"What about her long-term fate? She's stuck there unless you go get her back," said Foaly.

"True, it's not a pleasant world for elves. I'll do it, but in return I want you to stop spying on me," said Artemis.

"We're highly concerned about your alternate universe travels," objected Foaly. "One mistake and you could destroy our world."

"I don't intend to make any," said Artemis. "But with the help of the Faerie I could carry out my plan with less risk."

"Please go get her back," said Foaly. "We'll discuss ways we could help after that."

"I'll have to target 1.6 hours after I left there," said Artemis. "My margin of control over the arrival window is inexact and I can't risk overlap."

"Very well, I'll be back shortly." Artemis picked up another anchoring sphere and keyed in a password on his laptop. A peripheral device that looked like a light pen strobed him in a green light and he vanished.

Soon Artemis was back, not with Holly but with her helmet. "She didn't stay near the arrival site," he said. "I found where she ditched her armor and I played back the log. It seem she decided to investigate that world while she waited for rescue."

"Oh no! I wish she hadn't done that," said Foaly.

"I concur," said Artemis. "The helmet recorded her approaching an elf named Dobby, who offered her a job at the Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft. After that, she moved out of range."

"I guess she'll work undercover for a while and then go back to your arrival site. Maybe you could leave a coded message there for her and monitor for her return?" asked Foaly.

"It's not that simple," said Artemis. "I've been stealing books on magic and history from that world. Human wizards discovered their Haven long ago. The wizards discovered they could exploit King Frond's geas about not entering human homes without permission. They used it to enslave the elves."

"So if Holly accepts a 'job' at that school..." prompted Foaly.

"She'll become a house-elf, a slave, forbidden to leave without permission," said Artemis. "I also scanned a standard house-elf contract at a used bookstore. See if you can find any loopholes. I didn't see any at first glance. They've had thousands of years to get it right."

"She has to remain a slave for life or lose her magic?" Foaly asked, horrified.

"There's one way out. If any human she works for gives her an article of clothing, she will be freed. But people almost never do that."

"How can we help her?" Foaly asked.

"I can see only one way," said Artemis. "I must infiltrate that school as a student and trick someone into giving her clothes."


	5. House Elves

**Chapter 5**

While Artemis researched Hogwarts and plotted her rescue, Holly was desperately trying to avoid blowing her cover. It would be a disaster if the wizards of this world learned of the other world she came from.

It was hard to keep from lapsing into Gnomish, and even harder never to say "I." Often she had to avoid questions she longed to ask, to avoid exposing her ignorance. For example, she wanted to know how these elves recharged their magic if they never went outside to plant acorns. She guessed that the magic fields within Hogwarts kept them energized. Fortunately it seemed to be working for her too.

Some of the other elves were suspicious of her. One named Ichabod asked her, "What masters Holly from? Why Holly freed from masters?"

"Holly came from Ireland family home," she half-lied. "Old masters not like Holly to tell their secrets. Even name."

This made Ichabod back off. Loyalty to former masters was an admired trait. One miserable elf named Winky was not prevented from drinking her sorrows away at being dismissed from her old masters. Dobby was viewed as somewhat strange because he openly reveled in having been freed from the cruel Malfoy family.

"Good, noble Harry Potter freed Dobby," he told Holly. "Tricked old master into giving Dobby a sock."

This was a spark of hope to Holly. "Now Dobby has many hats and clothes. Where did Dobby get?"

"Harry Potter friend Hermione Granger gave. Hermione Granger wanted to free house elves, so made hats and scarves."

"Hermione Granger should mind own business," commented Ichabod. "House elves do not want freedom. Ichabod was born here, happy here."

"Dobby took all hats and scarves so Hermione Granger would be happy," said Dobby.

"Hermione Granger still doing this?" Holly asked, trying to keep the hope out of her voice.

"No," said Dobby. "Hermione Granger stopped last year. Maybe Hermione Granger found out how house elves felt."

Now Holly had a plan of action and she felt a lot better. When the semester stated she would find this Hermione and...

She felt a warning thought tingle inside her mind. A particularly nasty side-effect of the contract was a magical requirement to punish herself for disloyalty. Plotting to free herself was disloyal, it seemed. She was going to have to shut her hand in a door.

Despair seized her again. What was the use?


	6. Plotting a Rescue

**Chapter 6**

Artemis contacted Foaly on the communicator. "I've worked out how I'm going to do this. I'm going to kidnap and impersonate one of the students."

"Whaaat!" Foaly neighed. "Kidnapping a wizard sounds extremely risky. Why don't you go in as a new student instead?"

"They start training at age eleven and I can't pass for that age," said Artemis. "Besides that, the book _'Hogwarts, A History'_ says there's an entry ritual where someone or something probes your mind. I'd just as soon bypass that."

"Why not just break in secretly?" Foaly suggested.

"I thought of that, but it's built like a fortress and probably has all sorts of magical wards," said Artemis.

"But couldn't they detect your identity by magic?" Foaly asked.

"Not so easily. I found an article in one of their newspapers about an insane wizard who successfully replaced a Hogwarts teacher for a whole semester before he was caught."

"He **was** caught," Foaly muttered.

"I won't be," said Artemis. "With your technological help, of course. I'll need elvish plastic surgery to make myself resemble the student. Your mind-wiping technology can read memories like a book, so you can give me the background information I'll need."

"How can we do all this when you're stuck in your home?" Foaly asked.

"I'll need a tunnel for equipment and support," said Artemis. "I suggest you employ our old friend Mulch Diggins for the job."

"Old friend indeed," Foaly grumbled.

"You pretend mutual antipathy but I see right through it," Artemis said.

"Wait a minute," Foaly objected. "Once we change your appearance you won't be able to show your face at home. You'll effectively disappear again. Your parents will be frantic and they could find our tunnel..."

"We'll accomplish it all in one night, like San D'Klass," said Artemis.

"You mean..." Foaly started to say.

"Yes. Time-stop the mansion for the duration of the mission when everyone but myself is asleep."

"How am I going to justify all this to Headquarters?" Foaly moaned.

"You're good at worst-case scenarios. Imagine this: Holly is found out and interrogated. Wizards learn of this world and invade. It's the demon scenario again, only worse."

"If anything happens to Holly I'll hold you responsible," said Foaly.

"Me? I didn't send Holly into harm's way. You did," said Artemis. "Now please get busy arranging what I need. I'll email you a list."

"I suppose you'll want to go into Hogwarts loaded with our technology," said Foaly.

"If I thought it would work, I would," said Artemis. "Unfortunately the magic fields within Hogwarts are so strong that they prevent electrical equipment from functioning. The wizard culture prides itself on doing everything by magic and shunning the ways of ordinary people, whom they call 'muggles'. I'll take some equipment anyway, on the off chance that I can find a way to shield it."

"That's quite a handicap," said Foaly.

"You know I love a challenge," said Artemis.


	7. Mulch Delivers

**Chapter 7**

Foaly frowned when Mulch Diggums was shown into his field laboratory near Fowl Manor. "Why is it that every Artemis Fowl case forces me to work with you? I can't get the stink out of my mane for a week afterward."

Mulch sniffed the air, "Talk about stinks, what's that I smell on you?"

"That happens to be cologne, Equine Musk Number Nine," said Foaly stiffly.

"Smells like horse pucky to me," said Mulch.

"Caballine likes it," Foaly said.

"Ho ho, you and the little mare are getting it on, eh?" said Mulch.

Foaly blushed, "That's none of your business. Let's get on with the mission. You've tunneled into Fowl Manor before. We need you to do it again."

"Yeah, I'll never forget that experience," said Mulch, remembering his first encounter with Butler.

"This box contains my most advanced stun-gun finger attachment. It's has a user-recognition safety feature so an agent can't accidentally shoot himself when he scratches his nose," Foaly boasted. There's also invisibility-shielded armor in Artemis' size, the latest C Cube with a built-in holographic projector, and several other items he asked for."

"What's he need with all that?" Mulch asked.

"A lot," said Foaly. "Because of him Holly is trapped as a slave in a parallel world. We have to equip him so he can go rescue her."

"I'd think you were kidding, but I know Artemis. What's he going to do?" asked Mulch.

"Kidnap a wizard and take his place, for starters," said Foaly. "Go on, take it to him."

"The mansion's on solid limestone except the wine cellar on one corner," Mulch "Is Artemis going to meet me there?"

"He has to bypass Juliet, who's on guard outside his bedroom door, but he says he can handle it."

----

Artemis was talking with Juliet at that very moment.

"How are you holding up with 24-hour guard duty, Juliet?" Artemis asked.

"Just fine," said Juliet cheerfully. "I'm in great shape."

"You seem a little sleepy right now," Artemis said, looking her in the eye using his magic for a mesmer. He could never have gotten away with this with Butler, but Julia had never recovered her memories of the faries from the mind-wipe after the incident of the C Cube.

"Yes, I guess it's time for one of my cat-naps," Juliet said, yawning. "Don't worry, I'm a light sleeper. Nothing will get past me."

"You won't be woken by anything," Artemis told her, applying a little more mesmeric power.

"I won't be..." Juliet dropped off to sleep.

Artemis slipped past her and down to the wine cellar. Mulch was just breaking through in a burst of dwarf-gas.

"Good timing," said Artemis, ignoring the stench. He opened the box and put on the equipment,

"I'll be back very shortly with a wizard," he told Mulch.

Moments later he was back, an unconscious young man at his feet.

"That was quick," said Mulch.

"It took hours on that end," Artemis said, "People are afraid of some variety of wizard uprising. Most were traveling in groups. I finally caught this one alone, coming out of a shop in the dark magic district. But I'm getting better at re-entry control, so I saved time on this end."

"You want me to take him back to Foley for mind-scanning?" Mulch asked.

"Just a moment. I want to use this portable scanner to get his name," Artemis said. "There's a precaution I need to take."

"I don't get it, but I'll wait," said Mulch.

After a few minutes, Artemis said, "All right, I have it. Draco Malfoy."

"Weird name," said Mulch Diggums.


	8. To Replace a Wizard

**Chapter 8**

Artemis had finished his preparations and repacked the box of equipment by the time Mulch had carried the unconscious Draco down the tunnel to Foaly and returned.

"Hang on for a messy ride!" Mulch told the boy genius. Artemis was covered with grime when he reached the other end.

"Good luck, kid," said Mulch. "I hope you get Holly back. She was an all-right detective partner, for a cop. I'd like to stay but I've got to get back to Haven."

"Don't worry, Mulch," said Artemis. "I'll get her."

Foaly said, "No time for long goodbyes. We need to get on with the mission."

"You may begin the time-stop now," Artemis said. "I wish my family to be undisturbed while I'm absent."

"You know we can only hold a time-stop for eight hours," Foaly said. "We'll need most of that to do a complete mind-scan on your abductee. Your plastic surgery will take at least three hours, even with magic to speed the healing. You'll also need to be put back to normal in order to see your family again, so that's another three hours. How quickly do you imagine you can carry out the mission?"

"That part doesn't count because it's a different timeline," Artemis said. "I can return here moments after I leave. As for the mind-scan, couldn't you just focus on the memories required to impersonate Malfoy at school? I'll only have to deceive his family for one night. Hogwarts opens tomorrow, that is, the day after I kidnapped him."

"We can do a rush job in four hours if you're willing to take the risk of missing something important," said Foaly.

"I doubt there's anything of importance. He's just an average schoolboy," said Artemis, making his first serious mistake on this case.

"Very well then," said Foaly, and he triggered a time-field around the house. Everyone inside was asleep, so they would pass through to the next day with no awareness of the extra time.

"I'll return for Malfoy first, so that he can be re-introduced into his life," said Artemis. "Then I'll come back with Holly."

"Why not bring back Holly on the first trip?" Foaly asked.

"That would be too exhausting," said Artemis. "I need to rest between hops when I carry someone, therefore it's preferable to do so on the other side, where I can take all the time I need."

It was always difficult to tell with Artemis whether he was giving his real reasons or a glib prepared response. Foaly was suspicious but decided to let it pass.

"Be careful. You've never been this alone on a mission," Foaly pointed out. "You'll have no Butler for muscle, no communication with me for backup, and no equipment but what you carry with you."

"Plus my wits," said Artemis. "They are more than sufficient."

"Overconfident as ever," said Foaly. "But there's no more time to chat. You have to get into surgery immediately."

After the medical team put Artemis under anesthesia for surgery to make him the double of Malfoy, and the tech team put Draco under the mind-wipe scanners for a dossier extraction, Foaly called back to headquarters to report.

Commander Vinyáya had disturbing news. "We've decided at Headquarters that Artemis Fowl has gone too far this time. His new magical abilities plus his meddling with dangerous timelines leads us to the conclusion that he'll have to be mind-wiped again."

"I promised I'd never do that to him again," protested Foaly.

"The decision is not yours to make," said Vinyáya. "His plastic surgery gives us the perfect opportunity. When he comes back with Holly and we anesthetize him to fix his looks back to normal, we'll do another mind-wipe to erase his memories of us and of magic. He won't have time to make secret reminder disks like last time. We can fix his mismatched eye while we're at it."

"And if he doesn't come back? If his mission fails?" Foaly asked.

"That would very bad for us. We'd just have to cut our losses and leave Holly there, hoping she isn't caught" said Vinyáya.

"I don't like it," said Foaly. "He's saving us again and we reward him with a mind-wipe?"

"This time he's the one who got us into trouble," said Vinyáya.

"It was partially our fault, too," said Foaly.

Artemis slept on under the surgical anesthesia, oblivious that the fate of his mind was being discussed and that this mission for the fairies could be his last.


	9. Mother Love

**Chapter 9**

"Wake up, Artemis," said Foaly. "Look in the mirror and tell me what you think. We had to make you a little taller, but not much. We've also altered your vocal chords so you'll sound like him."

Artemis saw he was now an exact copy of Draco Malfoy. As he dressed in Malfoy's clothes, he noticed an odd black tattoo on his left forearm, shaped like a skull with a snake coming out of its mouth.

"What is this?" Artemis asked.

"We copied it from Malfoy," said Foaly. "His has traces of magic that we can't reproduce at short notice."

"Try to get something about it for the dossier," said Artemis. "I'll read what you've extracted thus far while you finish up."

The dossier contained not only text, but also images of friends, enemies, teachers, and relatives drawn from Draco's memory. Artemis speed-read it, committing it to his photographic memory.

"He's an only child and his father's incarcerated," Artemis noted. "That means I'll only have to deal with his mother tonight."

"Only his mother..." muttered Foaly. "Frond preserve us!"

Artemis continued to read, memorizing details about Hogwarts and how to find his way around there.

"I have something about that tattoo," said Foaly. "It means your boy's a Death Eater, a follower of a wizard named Lord Voldemort. His parents are, too. They seem to be terrorists out to overthrow the government. If you want more details we'll have to take more time on the scan."

"That complicates matters to a certain extent, but I'll go with what I have," said Artemis.

He put on a backpack containing the C Cube, the stun darts, a tool kit, and other portable equipment (but not the bulky armor). The backpack projected its own cloaking field, but Artemis planned to conceal the contents in his school luggage rather than risk using the backpack at Hogwarts.

"No more delay. I must commence my expedition," Artemis said.

"Best of luck," said Foaly. "We'll be waiting for you."

If Artemis noticed that Foaly said this in an odd tone, he let it pass without comment. He took an anchoring sphere, fired up the computer program, and vanished.

He popped into Diagon Alley, a major wizard shopping district in London. He was in a deserted back alley behind a shop. After he anchored himself, he went out into the street and stared walking toward the exit.

It was August 31, 1996 here, and Draco would be starting his sixth year at Hogwarts tomorrow. Artemis had been surprised by the date when he began traveling here, but he now realized that variations in time rates among parallel worlds were entirely consistent with his temporal theories. This world had diverged from his world thousands of years ago, so a discrepancy of a little over a decade was not unusual.

"Draco!" a woman called from behind him. "I've been looking all over for you!"

He turned and recognized Draco's mother, Narcissa Malfoy.

"Where have you been?" she demanded.

"Around, just window-shopping," said Artemis in the role of an evasive teenager.

"You don't fool me," said Narcissa. "It's to do with..." she looked around and then whispered. "Your mission."

Artemis almost thought she had figured him out already, but he knew she had to be talking about something else. He tried silence and a sullen look.

"We can't talk here," Narcissa said. "Let's go home." She led the way to a large fireplace, tossed in a pinch of powder, and said "Malfoy Mansion." Artemis followed suit; the dossier had taught him about Flue Powder.

"Draco, please listen," said Narcissa. "I'm desperately afraid for you. You're my only son! I don't want to lose you,"

"Don't worry," Artemis tried. "I can do it."

This seemed to be the wrong thing to say. "Of course I'm worried! Especially if you're so overconfident! Listen to me. I wasn't going to tell you this, but now I have to."

"What?" Artemis asked.

"Aunt Bella and I visited Professor Snape," said Narcissa. "I told him about the plan."

"Why?" Artemis asked. A hint of anger in his tone seemed appropriate.

"The Dark Lord ordered us to tell no one, but Professor Snape already knew," explained Narcissa. "I pleaded with him. He promised to watch over you and to protect you to the best of his ability. He also promised to carry out your mission if you cannot do it."

"How do you know he'll do what he promised?" asked Artemis. He remembered from the dossier that Snape's loyalties had been questioned.

"He swore an Unbreakable Vow," said Narcissa. "He'll die if he doesn't do it. Don't you see? This gives you a way out. Just tell him you can't go through with it, and he'll have to do it for you."

Artemis was still at a loss to know what she was talking about. To draw her out, he continued to argue. "What kind of a Death Eater would I be if I did that?"

"A live one," said Narcissa. "I'm convinced the Dark Lord only gave you this mission in revenge for your father's failing to get the prophecy at the Ministry of Magic. Lord Voldemort expects you to die."

"What if I succeed?" Artemis asked, still desperately angling for details.

"The Dark Lord would reward you, but you have no chance," said Narcissa. "It would be so much easier for Snape. He's an experienced potion wizard. He has the fool's complete trust. He's a skilled occlumens. You won't be able to get near Dumbledore without him picking it up from your mind."

"I have to try," said Artemis in a stubborn tone. He was thankful for the warning about Dumbledore. He would have to steer clear of him on his own mission.

"You think you have to be tough, but I can see through you," said Narcissa. "You're a frightened little boy,"

Artemis knew this was true of himself, but he also knew no teenager would take this from his mother. "Leave me alone!" he demanded.

"You're determined to thow your life away by trying to kill Dumbledore!" Narcissa cried, running from the room.

So Draco was under orders by a society of terrorist wizards to kill the headmaster of Hogwarts, who was by all accounts a formidable wizard. This mission was getting more challenging by the minute.


	10. Hogwarts Express

**Chapter 10**

To Artemis' relief, Narcissa didn't attempt to dissuade him any further. She hardly spoke to him the next morning at breakfast, and she didn't stay to see him off on the Hogwarts Express. He was able to slip his extra equipment into the trunk containing his school robes and ditch the backpack in a trash bin.

Artemis was inclined not to worry about the Dumbledore assassination plot. He would free Holly and get out quickly, leaving the real Draco to deal with it. Why should he take sides? This wasn't his world. From what he had read, the Ministry of Magic was a corrupt bureaucracy; perhaps they deserved to be overthrown.

He found a train compartment with several of Draco's Slytherin friends: Blaise Zabini, Pansy Parkinson, Gregory Goyle, and Vincent Crabbe.

Pansy Parkinson smiled invitingly and patted the seat beside her. "Come over here, Draco," she said. "I missed you. You've been so busy this summer I hardly got to see you. Come on, rest your head in my lap."

Artemis felt an urge to do it, but he knew it was his teenage hormones talking. He couldn't afford to get involved with Draco's girlfriend. His inexperience would give him away.

"I'm still going to be busy," he told her, taking a seat on the other side of the compartment. "I think we should cool it for a while."

Pansy stared across at him. "You're breaking up with me? You met someone else this summer? Who was it?"

"Nothing like that," Artemis said. "I have something important to do and I can't be distracted."

"I can't be distracted," mocked Pansy angrily, "You sound like Potter, who thinks he's the 'Chosen One'. I'm gone. It's starting to stink in here."

She jumped to her feet and barged out of the compartment.

"Is that for real, Draco?" Goyle asked. "Are you chosen for a special mission by the Dark Lord?"

"If I were, I couldn't talk about it," Artemis replied.

"I think you're just making it up because you're tired of Pansy," Blaise said. "What could you do that He would want?"

"You may find out someday," said Artemis mysteriously. The real Draco would be the one to fulfill that, one way or another.

A younger student opened the compartment door nervously. "I have a message for Blaise Zabini."

Blaise unrolled the scroll. "Well, well. It seems I'm invited to lunch with our new teacher, Horace Slughorn. It might be interesting... check you later."

Blaise left the compartment, leaving Artemis alone with Crabbe and Goyle.

"Draco, if you've got a mission for the Dark Lord I want to help," said Goyle.

"Me too," said Crabbe.

They weren't the brightest of minions but he knew they were completely loyal to Malfoy. Perhaps he could make use of that.

"I'll let you know," said Artemis.

"What could Slughorn want with Blaise?" Crabbe asked.

"I dunno," said Goyle.

"What's he going to be teaching, do you know?" Artemis asked. The dossier hadn't gone into detail about potential teachers and he wasn't sure who Slughorn was.

"Probably Defense against the Dark Arts," said Goyle. "He'd better watch out for the jinx."

Artemis knew there had been a new DADA teacher each year, but he doubted the jinx. He decided to say nothing, and the conversation languished.

"Looking forward to the new Quiddich season?" asked Crabbe.

"Yeah," said Artemis. "We'll beat Gryffindor this year for sure." Actually, he was planning feign injury and duck Quiddich, since there was no way his broomstick athletics would be up to standards.

When Blaise came back, for some reason he had trouble closing the door. He reported that Slughorn was sucking up to important people who might do him favors. He was steering clear of Death Eaters, and that was probably why he didn't invite Draco.

Artemis reacted based on what he knew of Draco's pride. "I don't care about Slughorn, he's just a teacher anyway. When the Dark Lord takes over he'll reward people based on their service, not their education."

"What service can you do when you're not fully qualified yet?" asked Blaise.

"I can't tell you that," said Artemis. "The walls have ears."

He had noticed a glimpse of what looked like a sock right after Blaise finally got the door closed. He suspected someone was eavesdropping, probably Draco's enemy Harry Potter in an invisibility cloak. There was another confirmation when Goyle got his bag from the luggage rack and Artemis heard a muffled cry of pain.

When the train reached Hogwarts, Artemis made an excuse and went back into the compartment. The last thing he needed was one of Draco's enemies tailing him.

Unknown to the fairies he had not just stolen magic books. He had been practicing simple spells with a stolen wand. Now it was time to put his skills to the test. "Petrificus Totalis!" he cried, pointing Draco's wand where he knew the intruder was hiding. If it didn't work, he could follow up with a stun dart.

It worked: Harry Potter came crashing stiffly to the floor.

"I knew you were there, Potter," he said. "I didn't let you overhear anything important, but I'm going to teach you a lesson for following me. I'll just get you out of the way so nobody trips over you. Wingardium Leviosa!"

Artemis used the second spell to lift Harry Potter off the floor and back into the luggage rack. He tucked Potter's invisibility cloak around him.

"With luck they won't find you until you get back to London," said Artemis. "Have a pleasant journey... not!"

Artemis left the train and boarded the carriage for Hogwarts.


	11. Holly Shines

**Chapter 11**

Work was much harder for Holly and the other elves in the kitchen now that school had started. They had cooked all day for the enormous welcoming feast and then had to clean up the dishes late into the night. Now they were up again early preparing breakfast.

A recent new arrival, an elf named Kreacher, had made life more interesting. He was completely devoted to the dark side, but for Holly the important thing was that he creatively interpreted commands from masters he hated. He had contributed to the death of his former master, Sirius Black, by taking literally the command to 'get lost'. The other house elves thought this was horrible, but Holly thought it showed great initiative.

"Kreacher's new master Harry Potter was very late to school," Kreacher had gloated to her this morning. "Got hexed on Hogwarts Express and found by Auror Nymphadora Tonks hours later when train nearly back to London. Harry Potter missed all the feast and speeches, only got back early this morning. Kreacher happy."

Suddenly there was a hush. Holly turned around and saw a student had entered the kitchen. He was blond and sneering, and she saw the other elves shrink back from him.

"Who is that?" she asked Dobby.

"Draco Malfoy. Dobby knows Draco Malfoy well," said Dobby, "Used to hurt Dobby when Dobby worked for Malfoy house."

"Malfoy pointed at Holly. "You, come over here and polish my shoes," he demanded in a haughty voice.

"Holly should watch out for kicks," Dobby warned.

Holly was holding a rag with scouring powder she had been using to polish a pot. She decided to try a creative interpretation of her own. Polishing was polishing, right? She rushed up to the student and began briskly "polishing" the shine off his shoes.

She got a sudden shock as the boy whispered, "Holly, I'm Artemis Fowl in disguise. I'm here to help."

"Frond I'm glad you're here!" said Holly. "I'm going crazy in this place."

"It would be fruitless for me to give you clothing myself, since I'm not really a student. But I'll find someone else to do it."

"Hermione Granger," said Holly. "She leads an activist group for freeing the elves. She tried giving clothes to them a couple of years ago, but got no takers."

"She's on Draco's enemy list, but I'll talk to her," said Artemis. "We had best break off this conversation. I'll drop a coin as I leave. It's one of a pair I found in Draco's pocket; messages written on one appear on the other."

"Better pretend to kick me as you leave. Sorry about the shoes," said Holly.

Artemis kicked her without much force, and Holly made it look worse than it was. "You stupid elf! Look what you did to my shoes!"

He dropped the coin he had promised, and Holly palmed it.

Dobby came over. "Holly polished the shoes of Draco Malfoy with that? Holly is very funny. Dobby hopes Holly not in big trouble."

"Holly will have to punish herself, but worth it," Holly said, inwardly glowing with hope.

---

A little later Holly got a message on the coin. "Come up to the dining hall, quickly."

Artemis was arguing with a young woman. Holly realized she must be Hermione Granger.

"You just gave up?" Artemis said with a sneer in his voice. "A real do-gooder would have tried harder than that. Why didn't you test whether they wanted freedom or not? I dare you to throw this glove to the next house-elf that comes along."

"Don't listen to him, Hermione," said a red-headed boy beside her. "He's trying to get you in trouble."

"I'll do it. Just watch me," said Hermione.

Holly knew what she had to do. She walked close by, heading toward a table as if to wipe up a spill. Hermione threw the glove, and she caught it.

"You're free!" Hermione told her.

"Let's test that," said Artemis. "Stand on your head, elf."

To her great disappointment, Holly found that she still was compelled to obey.

"It didn't work," said Hermione sadly. "I'm sorry, I guess that students can't free elves."

Artemis jeered in his character of Draco. "You spent all that time on your SPEW nonsense and didn't even check to make sure it would work? You stupid mud-..."

"Silencio!" said Hermione, jabbing her wand at him. "I'm not taking that racist slur from you any more, Malfoy."

Hermione walked off with her friend, telling him, "I do feel stupid. I should have known last year. Dobby took clothes from me, but he still had to punish himself when he warned the D.A. about Umbridge."

Artemis couldn't speak, but he shook his head sadly at Holly. They would have to try something else.


	12. Snape the DADA Teacher

**Chapter 12**

Unfortunately, it was time for Artemis' first class and he would have to go to it silenced. The class was Defense Against the Dark Arts, now taught by Severus Snape.

Snape had lit the dark dungeon room with candles and decorated the walls with grim pictures of the victims of dark curses. After all the students were seated, Snape stood and began his lecture.

"You have had five different teachers in this subject, all with their own peculiar styles. In spite of this, you have managed to scrape together O.W.L.S. in this subject. But you will face far more difficult challenges in this N.E.W.T. class.

"The Dark Arts are many and hydra-headed. Stop one form, and two more take its place. It is an eternal and insidious adversary. You will need many news skills to defend yourselves, including nonverbal magic. Can anyone tell me why nonverbal magic is used?"

Blaise Zabini raised his hand. "To avoid giving warning of the spell you are about to use."

"Yes, and there are many other reasons. Today we have an object lesson. Come forward, Mr. Malfoy," said Snape. "This morning after breakfast I witnessed Mr. Malfoy set a clever, humiliating trap for Hermione Granger. Nothing makes a know-it-all feel worse than to reveal that there is something she doesn't know about a subject in which she is a self-proclaimed expert, in this case elf liberation."

Slythernins snickered at this and gave Artemis approving smiles. But Pansy Parkinson glared at him.

"Granger used the last refuge of a witch who has lost a debate: a Silencio spell. Malfoy, I ask you to imagine that a dark wizard has silenced you and is about to follow up with a Cruciatus Curse. Try to do a Finite Incantatum to free yourself."

Artemis struggled but he lacked experience with Finite Incantatum, much less in nonverbal style.

Snape said, "By design the Silencio is very difficult to break from within. In this class some of you may learn how, and how to cast many other offensive and defensive spells in silence."

Snape silently broke the hex for Artemis. "Now you will break into teams of two. One team member will try to hex and the other to defend, both in silence."

Artemis managed to get himself paired with Goyle, which was good because Goyle couldn't manage any silent attacks. He would have been much worse off against Pansy Parkinson.

After class, Snape called Artemis to stay behind for a few minutes.

"Why did you make me fail in front of the whole class?" Artemis demanded angrily, knowing Draco's pride.

"I'm sure your mother told you about my vow to watch over you this year," said Snape. "Consider it a helpful warning. Baiting Potter and friends is an amusing sport. I indulge in it often myself. But you have a more urgent problem to attend to. It would be better to stay out of their way as much as possible."

"I had to stop Potter following me!" Artemis said.

"Yes, I enjoyed the way you made him tardy," said Snape. "But don't underestimate Potter. He's managed to foil our plots every school year, at least partially. Obviously you know about his invisibility cloak. You need to know about Potter's map, too."

"His map?" Artemis asked.

"When Crouch, the imposter Moody, was made to confess under Veritaserum, I was there to hear it. He spoke of a map of Hogwarts that Potter had. It nearly ruined everything."

"What could it do?" asked Artemis.

"Not only did it plot Crouch's movements, it identified him by the name 'Barty Crouch' in spite of his polyjuice potion shape-changing," said Snape.

"Why didn't that ruin everything? Crouch had to keep up his disguise all school year," said Artemis.

"Two things. First, Potter was confused because of the Minister of Magic with the same name. Second, Crouch tricked Potter into giving the map to him before Potter spotted the truth," said Snape.

Artemis was glad of a precaution he had taken. He hadn't known of the map specifically, but he had read of spells that could reveal true names. He had purchased his own island long ago as part of a criminal scheme, and transferred his citizenship there so he could legally change his name at a moment's notice. He had changed it to "Draco Malfoy" before he left.

"What happened to the map after that?" asked Artemis.

"I wanted that map for myself, but by the time I got back from meeting Lord Voldemort the map was missing from Crouch's office. I suspect Potter got it back again."

"What can I do against it?" Artemis asked.

"Be careful in your movements, and don't use polyjuice disguises in front of Potter or his friends," said Snape. "The Room of Requirement should be Unplottable, especially if you ask for it as a hiding place."

Artemis felt that he was expected to know about the Room of Requirement already. It wasn't in his dossier, so he would have to find it some other way if he wanted to use it.

"Now, what do you plan to do about Dumbledore?" Snape asked,

Artemis thought fast. Maybe he could use the opportunity to get more information to free Holly. "The house-elf trick this morning was an experiment. I remembered how Potter stole Dobby from us, and how Dobby has helped Potter ever since. If I could free an elf, maybe I could use it against Dumbledore."

"That was an idiotic idea," said Snape. "I gave you more credit for cleverness in class than you deserved. First of all, students can't free Hogwarts elves, as you saw."

"Who is allowed to?" Artemis asked. "Could any teacher do it?"

"No," said Snape. "Only the Headmaster can give a Hogwarts house-elf clothes. Besides, it's foolish to depend on the gratitude of a common elf. It might just as easily be angry at being freed and turn on you."

"I see," said Artemis.

"There's one exception," said Snape. "The elf named Kreacher is only serving at Hogwarts because Potter ordered him to. You'd have to trick Potter into giving him clothes, hidden in a container so Potter wouldn't know he had done it. Kreacher is loyal to the pureblood wizarding families and might well help you."

"That could be good," said Artemis.

"On the other hand, Kreacher is unreliable. He might just attack Potter if he were freed. You'd best work out some other plans. I'll have to report on your progress to the Death Eaters soon."

Artemis left the classroom with many new worries. He had an enemy who could track his every move, the Death Eaters were monitoring him through Snape, and the only person who could free Holly was a wizard Artemis couldn't go near without getting his mind read and blowing his cover. This was going to require a lot of thought.


	13. Vanishing Cabinet

**Chapter 13**

Artemis also attended the advanced N.E.W.T.S. classes in Potions and Transfiguration. He soon realized he would have to spend a lot of his time just catching up. There was too much new material even for his genius. Muscle memory was involved too, for the wand gestures and potion stirring. Potions class had been especially annoying because Harry Potter got a sudden burst of inspiration and became the class favorite. For example, Potter won a bottle of Felix Felicis from Slughorn, a luck potion that Artemis badly wanted.

Still, this was a golden opportunity to receive magic training he would have no chance of obtaining at home. Artemis became so obsessed with this work that he hardly realized a month and a half had gone by. At breakfast one morning in mid-October, Artemis received a curious owl message from Borgan and Burkes, the dark artifact shop where Artemis had first spotted Draco.

"Dear Mr. Malfoy,

Here is the first installment of the information you requested about the repair of the Vanishing Cabinet. We have researched our historical scrolls and owners manual to find the following:

1) The twin cabinets were painstakingly fashioned from identical lumber made from a single oak tree and were crafted to be exact twins of each other. This is in accordance with the magical principle that 'like affects like'.

2) The cabinets were built in the same room, with two sets of wizards coordinating the same charms at the same moment. This is in accordance with the principle of 'once in contact, always in contact'.

3) It would be far easier to repair the broken cabinet if the two cabinets were brought together again at our shop. We could also experiment on them more easily to see if the connection between them had been re-established. However, we understand that the cabinet you wish to repair must stay in place.

4) Take care not to enter the cabinet before it is repaired completely. The connection that would lead you to the other cabinet has been broken, so you would end up in a limbo dimension between them. It would be safe to put objects in for testing, provided you have tied something to them to pull them out if they accidentally slide in too far.

5) Be particularly careful to match the original wood-grain alignment when doing Reparo spells on the broken cabinet. We enclose a wizard photograph of the matching cabinet, rotating so you may see all sides.

6) Additional charms may be necessary to restore the cabinet. We will write further instructions once we research the exact sequence and timing of the charms.

We have moved the other cabinet to the back room of our shop to prevent accidental damage to it. Please let us know where you would like it delivered.

Sincerely,

Borgin and Burkes

P.S.: Just a reminder that the jewelry item you have ordered will be delivered through your contact in Hogsmeade this afternoon. We emphasize that it is for historical display purposes only, and disclaim any responsibility for misuse. Please use extreme caution in handling the package and do not touch the item itself under any circumstances."

Artemis realized this letter must relate to Malfoy's schemes against Dumbledore, but there was very little in his dossier about it. Once again he regretted the hasty memory scan he had ordered from Foaly.

The postscript was especially unsettling. The delivery sounded like some sort of nasty cursed amulet. Artemis planned to dispose of it when he got it. Older students were going to Hogsmeade today, but Artemis had to serve a detention with McGonagall for missing two Transfiguration assignments. Otherwise he would have tried to head it off in Hogsmeade.

The part about the Vanishing Cabinet reminded him of something in the dossier under 'Montague': "Montague told me about what happened to him in the Vanishing Cabinet and it gave me a great idea."

Artemis went over to Montague, who was just finishing dinner. "Tell me again what happened to you in the Vanishing Cabinet."

"I hate talking about the beastly thing," said Montague.

"It's important," said Artemis.

"All right, if you insist. Those wretched Weasley twins who dropped out last year pushed me into the Cabinet. It was broken, so I got stuck between places. It was dark but I could hear things, sometimes from Hogwarts and sometimes from Borgan and Burkes. I was in there for days and I nearly died of thirst. Finally I managed to Apparate out and I ended up with my head stuck in one of the toilets."

"What happened to the cabinet after that?" Artemis asked.

"I told you, I had the house elves get rid of it so that nobody else would get caught like that. I think they put it in the Room of Requirement."

The Room of Requirement again! He had to find it. He sent a message to Holly by coin: "Please help me find Room of Requirement where elves hide broken things. Break something if necessary."

That afternoon he had a message from Holly, "Meet me on seventh floor corridor and I'll show you. Let me know when."

As soon as his detention was up, Artemis arranged to meet Holly.

"I hope this is finally a breakthrough on getting me out of here," she told him.

"It might be. I have to investigate it," said Artemis.

"You walk along the corridor from the tapestry with dancing trolls with your eyes closed, wishing for a room to hide something. It helps to have a specific thing in mind. Then open your eyes and you'll see a new door."

"I brought my C Cube along to test an idea, so I'll use that," said Artemis. "I wish I had a place to hide my C Cube. I wish I had a place to hide my C Cube. I wish I had a place to hide my C Cube."

The door appeared and Artemis entered a huge room cluttered with things the students had disposed of over the years. With the picture from Borgin and Burkes as a guide he soon found the broken cabinet.

"Now for the test," said Artemis. "Montague said he was able to Apparate out of the cabinet back into Hogwarts. But 'Hogwarts, a History' says that nobody can Apparate into or out of Hogwarts. Therefore, I believe the cabinet creates an in-between space where the normal rules don't apply. I'm going to test the rule that technology won't work in Hogwarts."

He attached a rope to the C Cube and slid it into the broken cabinet. "Turn on!" he commanded it.

The C Cube hummed to life.

"Yes!" said Artemis with a whoop. "I haven't been able to do that since I brought it here. Now I have access to my own brand of magic: science."

"And this will help me get out of here?" Holly asked.

"Yes, once I get my plans in place," said Artemis. "That will be soon, I promise."

He returned to the Slytherin common room feeling happy, but he soon heard the dreadful story of a young student named Katie Bell who had touched a cursed necklace and been levitated and poisoned by it. Someone had given it to her in the bathroom of the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade. Now she was in the hospital wing and her life was hanging in the balance.

Artemis seethed. So that was how his "jewelry item" was delivered!

"The Death Eaters are responsible for the near-murder of an innocent girl in my borrowed name," Artemis said to himself. "I've changed my mind about not getting involved in the Dumbledore case. Before I leave, I'll make sure the assassination plot is in shambles!"


	14. What Harry Saw

**Chapter 14**

Harry Potter had insisted for weeks that Draco Malfoy was behind the poisoned necklace, but nobody believed him. Now he would get proof. The Marauder's Map showed him that Malfoy was out prowling the halls at midnight, heading up to the seventh floor.

There was Malfoy, a few feet away. As Harry crossed an intersecting corridor, there was a draft that caused him to clutch his invisibility cloak tightly around him. At that instant, Malfoy struck with a silent Petrificus Totalis. Harry was caught off guard, his wand-hand occupied.

"I've caught you twice with this spell, Potter," the person Harry took to be Malfoy said. "You must be getting tired of it. Ok, Room of Requirement: I need a place to hide Harry Potter."

Malfoy dragged Harry into the Room of Requirement and shut the door. He tugged off the invisibility cloak. "Now let's see if you have that useful person-plotting map on you. Yes, I know about the map. In fact, I counted on it to lead you into my trap. Aha, here it is."

Harry would have ground his teeth if he could. He had never hated Malfoy so much. How had Draco become so clever all of a sudden?

Malfoy placed Harry in an old book-cupboard with the shelves broken out of it. He left the door open a crack. "So you can witness my triumph," Malfoy said.

Malfoy took the invisibility cloak and left for a while. When he came back, Snape was with him.

"This had better be good," said Snape. "Much better than that fiasco of a plan with the poisoned necklace."

"That was too complicated and the delivery got botched," said Malfoy. "My new plan is much better. Look, the escape route is complete. I've repaired the broken Vanishing Cabinet."

Harry listened with amazement, but he realized Draco would never admit to so much in front of him unless he intended to kill him.

"Very good," said Snape. "You could also use this to bring a hit team of Death Eaters into the castle, you know."

"I could," said Malfoy, "But I'm supposed to do this myself. I also stole this map from Potter."

"I recognize that parchment!" said Snape. "That's the same one I once took from Potter -- signed by Prongs, Padfoot, Wormtail, and Moony. The Marauders: my worst enemies in my school days."

"It's great for tracking enemies," said Draco. "Look, it shows Albus Dumbledore on his way here."

"Here?" asked Snape in surprise. "Why is he coming here?"

"I lured him here with a message," said Draco. "I'm going to ambush him."

"You're going toe to toe with Dumbledore in a wizard's duel? That's your worst idea yet!" said Snape.

"I took the Felix Felicis you brewed for me," said Draco. "I can't lose."

"You most certainly can," said Snape. "You seem to have taken too much. One bit of luck you do have is that I've here to back you up."

Snape took cover behind a broken statue. Harry heard the door open and Dumbledore's step. He saw Draco put on his invisibility cloak and vanish. Harry wished he could shout a warning to Dumbledore, but he was helpless.

Dumbledore stopped not far from Harry's book cupboard and peered around. Suddenly a silent Expeliarmus caught him, and his wand went flying away.

"I've got you now," said Draco. "Prepare to die."

"Draco, you're not a killer," said Dumbledore.

"How do you know what I'm capable of?" Malfoy asked.

"I know you were behind the poisoned necklace," said Dumbledore. "That was a rather weak effort, Draco. So weak, that I believe your heart wasn't in it."

"I failed there, but now you're going to die!" said Draco. He pointed his wand at Dumbledore, but it shook.

"Murder is more difficult than the innocent think," said Dumbledore.

"Avad..." said Draco. Then his wand dropped. "I can't do it."

Snape emerged from behind the statue.

"Severus, thank heavens you're here," said Dumbledore. "Please..."

"Avadra Kedavra!" shouted Snape, his eyes glaring with loathing. The green beam struck Dumbledore in the chest and blasted him backward, so that he hit a tall stack of old schoolbooks and was buried under them when they fell.

Harry looked on in horrified shock. Snape had murdered Dumbledore! 

Snape looked at Draco in disgust. "You took Felix Felicis and you still couldn't do it? I'm afraid you're not cut out to be a Death Eater. Come along, we'll escape through your Vanishing Cabinet."

Snape entered first, but came out a moment later. "One more thing. You told me earlier that this cabinet allows muggle technology to work. I've prepared something to wipe out the evidence, along with half of Hogwarts."

Snape moved to the far wall and came back with an large heavy object. "This is a muggle bomb. I'll plant it just inside the Cabinet. There, it's set to explode in twenty minutes. Come on, let's get out of here."

"Wait," said Draco. "We can't blow up Hogwarts. My friends will be killed, too!"

"Stay and try to warn them if you want," said Snape. "I'm going."

"But you vowed to protect me!" Draco protested.

"That vow was phrased such that I was only bound while you attempted to carry out the Dark Lord's wishes. Since I have carried out those wishes, the vow is complete. I still won't risk attacking you, but I can leave you in danger, Goodbye," said Snape, and he ducked back into the Cabinet,

"I've got to get help!" cried Draco, running from the room.

Harry sweated in the cupboard. The bomb was counting down. Would help arrive in time?

Draco came back with Professor McGonagall and a house elf.

"Mr. Malfoy, you told this house elf to elf-teleport to me. She told me it was an emergency and to come at once. What is going on? Explain yourself," said Professor McGonagall.

"Professor McGonagall, Snape left a bomb in that cabinet that he said could destroy half of Hogwarts," said Malfoy.

"I'll transfigure it into something harmless," said McGonagall, but a moment later she said, "It isn't working. It must be spell-protected."

"Here," said Draco, handing a tool kit to McGonagall. "I used this toolkit to work on the Vanishing Cabinet. It's all yours. I don't know anything about muggle bombs."

"Holly knows," said the elf. "Holly was trained to disarm bombs."

"An odd sort of training for an elf, but we don't have much time," said McGonagall, "Here are the tools... Oh, just a moment."

"What is it?" asked Draco.

"Mr. Malfoy, I happened to notice a pair of workman's gloves at the bottom of this toolkit. It's my habit to check for such things whenever I hand things to an elf. With Professor Dumbledore absent, I am acting Headmistress and I would have accidentally freed her."

"But the bomb!" said Draco. "We don't have time for this!"

"Quite right," said McGonagall. "Holly, what tools do you need?"

"Holly needs wire-cutters, Headmistress," said Holly.

Professor McGonagall took out a pair of wire cutters and handed them to Holly, who set to work clipping wires on the bomb.

Suddenly, she seemed to have cut the wrong wire, because the counter suddenly sped up. The elf heroically grabbed up the bomb and dived deeper into the Vanishing Cabinet. There was a bright flash and a loud explosive sound, and Harry blacked out.


	15. What Really Happened

**Chapter 15**

Severus Snape had enjoyed being a double agent, playing off one side against the other and never having to commit, but the Unbreakable Vow had forced his hand. He had burned his bridges now. Everyone in Hogwarts would realize that it was impossible to cast an Avada Kadavra without genuine loathing for the victim.

But something had gone wrong. He had plunged into the Vanishing Cabinet to make his escape after killing Dumbledore. The cabinet had looked perfectly fine, but he had gone unconscious and woken up in blackness. That idiot Malfoy must have failed to completely repair it after all. No matter: Montague had escaped once, and so would he.

There was a click and a voice from the pocket of his robe. "Greetings, Mr. Snape. My name is Artemis Fowl. By now you have realized that the repair to the Vanishing Cabinet was an illusion. Also, the person you watched over and protected was not Draco Malfoy, but myself. He has been my prisoner."

"Polyjuice!" Snape thought. He had wondered about the possibility, but several times he had seen Malfoy for over an hour without the latter drinking anything.

"You have also failed to carry out Draco's mission. The Dumbledore you attacked was another illusion, as was the plot of him on the Marauder's Map. Your window of opportunity is gone. Dumbledore will hear of your attack on what you believed to be he and never trust you again. I tell you all this because I believe it will cause you difficulties with your Unbreakable Vow. This message will self-destruct, and so, I hope, will you."

Snape grabbed the muggle device out of his pocket and threw it away before it exploded. He desperately wracked his brain for a way that he could still fulfill his Vow, but he could think of nothing. The fiery bands of the Unbreakable Vow closed around him, burning as they choked the life from him.

---

Artemis Fowl smiled at Holly. "That came off very well," he said. The fake explosion had covered the stunning of McGonagall and Potter with a dart gun controlled by the C Cube, the same gun that stunned Snape when he entered the Vanishing Cabinet. The Dumbledore hologram had been perfect. So had the one of Snape when he reappeared from the Cabinet to set the "muggle bomb."

"But what about my freedom?" Holly asked. "McGonagall didn't fall for your toolbox trick."

"Pull off the rubber grips on the handles of the wire cutters," Artemis said.

Beneath one of the grips, wound around the metal handle, was a single silk stocking.

"Yes! I'm free!" said Holly. She gave Artemis a big hug.

"Now I must restore the real Draco," said Artemis. He removed his anchoring ring, pointed Draco's wand at himself, and vanished.

---

On the other side, Draco was already unhooked from the mind-wipe scanner. He was still unconscious.

"Mission accomplished," Artemis told Foaly.

"He's ready for you," Foaly told him. "He only needed a tiny bit of mind wiping to erase the kidnapping. When you get him back there you can mesmer in some suggestions to help him form memories of what he missed."

"Holly and I will come back where we belong shortly," said Artemis.

"As you can see, we'll be ready for you," said Foaly. He wondered if Artemis would understand his warning and what he would do about it.

Artemis picked up a change of clothing so that Draco could have what Artemis was wearing. He held onto Draco, triggered the dimension-hopping program, and vanished.

---

After Draco was re-dressed, Artemis and Holly woke him up. He was still groggy and easy to mesmer.

"Who are you?" he asked his double.

"I'm you," said Artemis. "You were knocked out by an explosion and you're still dreaming."

"You had a change of heart after your poisoned necklace nearly killed an innocent student," said Holly.

"I did?" asked Draco groggily.

"Yes," said Artemis. "You set a trap to expose Snape as a traitor, with Harry Potter as a witness. You cast a perfect illusion spell with the help of Felix Felcis. Snape thought he killed Dumbledore, but then Snape tried to destroy Hogwarts with a bomb. You got help in time and the school was saved. You're a hero."

"I am?" asked Draco.

"You had better accept whatever witness protection plan Dumbledore can offer you and your family," said Holly. "You will be in danger from Death Eaters for a while."

"All right," said Draco sleepily. The mesmer had taken.

"I wonder what Dumbledore will do when he comes back?" Holly asked.

"That's up to him," said Artemis. "He could pretend to be dead and fool Voldemort, if he wanted to. But now it's time we went back where we belong."

He and Holly stood together and Artemis used Draco's wand one last time. As they started to vanish, Artemis threw the wand so it landed near Draco's hand.

---

They didn't materialize where Holly expected. They were in an empty office room. A newspaper written in Chinese was folded on top of the desk.

"Artemis, where are we?" Holly asked.

"We are in an office building about a block from Taipei 101," said Artemis. "And if that clock on the wall is correct, it is precisely twelve minutes and thirty-six seconds after we transported to Limbo."

"What?" asked Holly in shock.

"Thanks to my recent intense magical training, and with a little help from Felix Felcis for luck, we have our lost three years back."


	16. Doubles

**Chapter 16**

"But what will happen to the world we came from, where they were waiting for us?" asked Holly.

"Just like the world where I fired a stun-bullet back at Abbot, it's no longer supported by a past," said Artemis. "It will merge with this timeline."

"Nobody will remember what happened at all?" Holly asked.

"We will," said Artemis. "This time we're more like the bullet that was fired than like the person who fired it. But nobody else will. There may be psuedo-memories here and there, but they will be dismissed as daydreams."

"This is what you were planning all along, isn't it?" Holly asked.

"It's why I was researching time dimensions and magic, yes," said Artemis. "I was uncertain at first whether to do it as part of this mission or not. One thing decided me. When I went back to get Malfoy, Foaly said he only required a little mind-wiping. But I could see the machines had been set to the highest power levels. I took that as a warning that they were going to mind-wipe me when I returned with you."

"I can see why they would be worried about your meddling with time, but that seems very drastic," said Holly.

"They need not be concerned any more. I have accomplished my goal," said Artemis. He picked up the phone on the office desk and dialed a number. "Butler, this is Artemis. I'm safely back and you may come and get me. Don't be surprised; I look completely different. It's a side-effect of time travel that a little plastic surgery can fix. Holly can vouch for my identity, and of course I know every code and password."

Artemis turned to Holly after he hung up. "Will you be able to arrange for elven plastic surgery to restore my appearance?"

Holly said, "I'll certainly try. Sool is still running things, so it may be tricky, but I really owe you one. I'm worried that higher-ups will think you're too powerful now."

"You needn't tell them the whole story of what happened. I wouldn't if I were you," said Artemis.

"At least you didn't keep a wand," said Holly.

Artemis nodded, a bit stiffly because of the wand he had taped to his back.

"There's an additional loose end," Artemis said. "We'll have to face it in three year's time."

---

When the island of Hybras reappeared, Foaly and his team were waiting in the facility he had designed to deal with the resulting tidal wave, rescue the survivors, and get away in thirty minutes or less.

Fairy vehicles swooped down to lift off everyone before the island sank. Artemis and Holly were among the ones they picked up.

"Welcome back!" said Foaly. "We were expecting you."

"I thought as much," said the Artemis who had just arrived.

"This may come as a bit of a shock, but three years have passed since you left," said Foaly.

"Three years?" said Artemis in dismay.

"That's pretty good, mud boy" said Qwan. "You have one hell of a brain to get us that close. I wasn't expecting to see this side of the century."

"But... my parents," said Artemis.

"Prepare yourself for another surprise," said Foaly. "Another you from an alternate reality time-traveled in to fill your place. Your parents haven't been worried."

The older Artemis entered the room. So did the older Holly.

"Artemis, meet Artemis," said Foaly. "Holly, meet Holly."

Artemis looked shocked for a moment, and then grinned. "So there are two of us now. I foresee interesting possibilities for new capers."

The older Artemis said, "Indeed, I have some plans drawn up already."

The younger Holly asked the older one nervously, "Is there room for two of us in the LEP?"

"They've agreed," said the older Holly. "Two great LEP officers is twice the value."

"And two Artemis Fowls will be more than twice the trouble," said Foaly. "We'll need two Hollys to deal with them."

"I'll help you set up a new identity," said the older Artemis. "Minerva has been waiting for you, too. She's closer to your age now, and quite attractive."

"Hmmm, intriguing," said the younger Artemis.

"One more thing you should know," said the elder Artemis. "You have a baby sister now, named Aphrodite."

"A sister? This is a lot to take in at once," said the younger Artemis.

"I understand," said the older Artemis.

Naturally his parent's lives had been altered by his coming home instead of being missing for three years. Instead of twins, they had one more child, and she wasn't genetically the same person as the sister twin she had replaced. It was a change he saw no way to repair, and a tragedy he chose to bear alone.

The big picture was good: his parents were happy, Butler was never in disgrace, and the fairies were not out to mind-wipe him. Artemis also had the satisfaction of making a change for the better in a parallel world. There were no doubt worlds where Draco Malfoy was not replaced, and where Draco had died or even Dumbledore had died. But in the world Artemis Fowl visited, he had made a difference.

The End


End file.
